Buzz from the Melvins on Digital v Analog and the Music Industry.

I couldn’t agree more with this. Quit trying to recreate a place that will never exist again.

There seem to be two fundamental tendencies in music today: On the one hand, a move towards complete virtualisation, where tracks and albums are merely released as digital files. And, on the other, an even closer union between music, artwork, packaging and physical presentation. Where do you stand between these poles?

All music is virtual. It simply moves air and it matters not how that happens. The digital versus analogue debate is totally pointless. Believe me, you can make soulless sounding crap records with either medium. Recording techniques are simply tools and nothing more. I can work with whatever is in front of me and be just as happy with the result. All the techno music from the 80’s was recorded to analogue and it all sounds like crap, case closed.

Packaging is cool in a lot of ways. I believe a move towards something a little more human in that department is desirable to SOME people, but that will be a small number. Most people will never care about such things and I have no interest in trying to make them care. I don’t have the energy for that argument with music fans. You can lead a horse to water so to speak. The main and most important thing is the music which is basically free on the internet. I see a not-too-distant future where music is free for the taking and if you want something beyond that it will have to be cool and you are going to have to pay for it. That’s just how it is.

The Internet Genie is out of the bottle and it ain’t going back. The music industry as you ever knew it to be is OVER, get used to it. For those people who want the music to be free AND don’t want to pay extra for something cool, we don’t make cool stuff for the likes of YOU. Just be happy the music is free! Isn’t that enough? What more do you want? How many records do you imagine I will make that lose me money? I promise it will be less than two…